Without You
by Melimea
Summary: "You know, I have never felt this way before. I always think about you, always. When you are around now days all I can do is look at you and feel…something. It hurt at first and it made me mad." Soulsilvershipping Rated for sexual content and language.


**There isn't enough Soulsilvershipping out there so I made on myself! Plus I have other stories and couldn't work on them till I got this thing out there. I started out wanting to make this simple and innocent then the smut fairy kicked my ass and…tada! The lemon isn't in there so email me later for it. Cleokiya and the last part is hotmail then .com. Its also on my profile page. :D Enjoy!**

**Without You**

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Kotone clutched her bag closer to her chest and looked on in wonder. Surly her rival wasn't this stupid. He couldn't be that incredibly full of himself to think that he could do this. To think that in order to be better than her, even _impress _her, that he had to do something like this just made her stomach turn. Taking in a deep breath she once again yelled at him to stop, to consider the consequences! He turned to her; his red hair blocking his eyes from her, yet the smile on his face said it all. Maybe if she had just let him win one fight? No! Her resolve was not to be broken. To have let him win would only result in a bigger ego and more snide remarks from him. "Silver," she pleaded, "You don't have to do this to prove yourself to me."

He turned towards her, his back to the watery depths below. The two had battled at Dragon's Den and, like every other time before; he had challenged her and lost. So now he stood before a whirlpool his pokémon all out of their prisons, freedom he told them, looking on with sad faces. He said that he had changed and they would save him if he fell, and Kotone prayed it was the truth. "I am stronger then I once was, and the only way I can prove it is to have them show you their loyalty they didn't have before." Kotone took a step forward and he lifted one foot off of the rock he had jumped to. She couldn't help but notice his Crobat twitch. If worse came to worse she would send her Staryu after him. Truth be told she already planned it, yet part of her wanted to see if his pokémon really would respond; the stupid part of her. "I'm not doing it to prove anything to _you._ This is for me." He turned to his pokémon and waved before pushing off of the rock.

Kotone felt like everything was happening in slow motion; the way he jumped high off the rock and slowly fell to the depth below. Just as she called her Staryu to attention Silver's Crobat jumped from his perch above and followed his master into the watery grave below. Kotone rushed to the side of the platform, even going as far as jumping to the rock he had stood on before, and watched with a teary gaze.

It had never accord to her that maybe even his pokémon wouldn't be swift enough to save him. What if he fell to deep and no one could reach him. Or what if he was trapped in the swift current and drowns while still spinning down. What if his pokémon missed and harmed him or… She swallowed.

What would _she_ do without him? He had been there for so much, even if it wasn't as anything more than a rival. He was with her when Team Rocket was defeated; he even gave her the pep talk she needed to do it. He was the one that spoke to her at the pokémon league telling her that to lose to _them_ would be his biggest embarrassment. He pushed her to improve not only her pokémon but herself. At Mt. Moon he had told her he had changed, and now she was starting to see it. The old Silver would have scuffed and pushed her away, both physically and mentally. He wouldn't have made it a point to meet her at Dragon's Den every Tuesday and Thursday, and _not_ challenge her _every _time they met, only sometimes.

Clutching her bag closer to her she watched as a purple blur flew high, a spot of red at his feet followed by a human body. She felt her shoulders sag and she slowly made her way back onto the floating platform. As the two landed she felt her hands shake as she approached him. He watched her with a critical eye and did not expect what she did.

Grabbing onto his jackets collar she slammed him into the side of the building, hoping the elders inside wouldn't be two upset, and started her rant. "You stupid idiot! What the hell is wrong with you going out and doing something like that! You didn't need to prove anything to your pokémon or me. I don't care what you say we _both _know you did that partially for me too! What do you think would have happened to your pokémon huh? They _do _care for you and would never be willing to be another trainer's pokémon, and you would free them only to be captured! You have rare and powerful pokémon! And what about me? I don't know what I would do without your stupid ugly mug around all the time! You are like self therapy for me! Always there to slap me back into my place when I'm being dumb or scared, gods!" She released him and stepped back. Opening her bag she pulled out a pokeball and returned Staryu back to her. Collecting herself she glared at him and stormed off, his pokémon parting for her looking on in fear, and let out her Gyarados so she could cross the water.

"Gods, he couldn't be as stupid as to off himself in front of me, let alone at all!" She continued her rant and her Gyarados bobbed along with a smug look. "I mean really, the man is nineteen now! We are supposed to have a little more maturity and that was _not _mature!" She continued to rant along until she felt something solid and hard hit the back of her head sending her flying off the front of her pokémon into the water.

She reemerged shortly after by being pulled up by her Gyarados. As she hung there from his mouth she found the source of the impact floating along in the water. Silvers boot drifted past, some of her brown hair stuck to the bottom. Why didn't she wear her hat today? It might have saved her some pain. Oh that's right. She wanted to impress the stupid asshole because he said he liked her without the hat and pigtails.

Gyarados put her back on his back and waited for her command, knowing she was torn between leaving and going back and killing the ginger haired boy. She was sitting cross-legged on his back glaring at the man who stood at the edge of the platform with a smirk on his face. Eventually he put his hands up to his mouth and yelled: "I told you!" He turned from her then and returned all of his pokémon save for his Feraligatr and joined her in the journey across the water. She continued to glare even as he stopped his pokémon next to her and jumped to her Gyarados' back. The large dragon snake turned its head and eyed him wearily but seeing no threat turned its attention to the Feraligatr that was tapping at its fin.

Silver sat himself down next to her and smiled contently, closing his eyes and taking a meditative pose. Kotone opened and closed her mouth a few times, her anger slowly fading and being replaced with an odd form of joy.

The joy he had started to make her feel a few years ago after she beat the league. The joy when he would show up and not challenge her because he called her weak but because he called her strong. Joy from when he smiled at her and it reached his eyes and joy from when he told her she looked pretty on the few days she decided to change up her wardrobe. If he wasn't around who would fill her with that strange joy? Hibiki? No, the man was so dense and absorbed in working with the professor he never had learned about her interest. She bit her lip, suddenly nervous.

Today she had come here to ask Silver out, formally. Sure they had an understanding; Tuesdays and Thursdays he was at the Den and Monday and Wednesdays he was at the League. She wanted something more from him though. She wasn't too sure what it was though. She was happy sitting here with him, still a little peeved at his act from earlier but all together she was happy. Sighing she looked up at him and found him to be watching her, a smile playing on his lips. "You would have missed me huh?" Any joy she was feeling vanished.

Turning away from him she crossed her arms and shut her eyes being defiant. "Jerk."

"Yeah…but I'm _your _jerk."

She turned slowly. What had that meant? He wasn't looking at her anymore and she found he was waving his Feraligatr over and grabbing his shoe from it. Returning the shoe to his foot he motioned for the pokémon to meet him on the shore. Shaking his foot he muttered a few curse words.

"Guess I shouldn't have thrown it if I didn't want it wet huh?" He turned to her and watched as she seemed to be going over things in her head. "Kotone?" Her head snapped up and he couldn't help but take in her appearance. She had grown up a lot over the years. A few years ago she, finally, had replaced that jumper, _thank the gods_, and adapted to blue jeans and typically anything blue for her top. After his comment once about her looking better without her hat he noticed she had stopped wearing it as often and sometimes even wore her hair down or in a ponytail. He also couldn't help noticing the curves that came out of nowhere over the years. The first ones showed up around fourteen when suddenly she wasn't so flat in the chest and then later at sixteen when her waist had something separating it from her ass. And good great pokémon gods in the sky her _ass. _

Looking into her face he noticed make up, not something she did every day. Something about today was special because she also wore that necklace Lance gave her on her sixteenth birthday, and she wore her hair down, _and _she was wearing a skirt. She had on a nice white button up blouse with a black vest and she wore a short black skirt with leggings on underneath that stopped above her ankles. She still had on boots though. He smiled at that. "Can I _help_ you?" She ground out. He snapped his head up, so she finally noticed he was looking at her.

"I think you can," he watched the blush spread over her cheeks. "You need to elaborate, I think, on a few things you said a short while ago." Her tongue had slipped out to moisten her upper lip and he found himself distracted. "Uh…" He shook his head. "So, you would miss me huh? A lot I take it." He pulled at the cuff of his jacket and unzipped it. His wardrobe had barely changed at all since his childhood. The only difference, he took his jacket off sometimes now.

"What makes you think that," she asked jumping from her Gyarados to the sandy ground below. He jumped down too and watched her return her pokémon and start for the exit. He reached out grabbing her wrist and spun her around to face him. "Hey," she said pulling at her wrist, but he noticed there wasn't much force behind it.

"Wasn't it you who told me about confrontation and letting others know how you feel and all that stupid shit?" Her fight stopped and she simply stood before him looking to the side.

"I didn't mean it," she whispered. A red eyebrow shot up and he pulled her closer.

"The confrontation or what you said earlier?" She turned red and moved her gaze to their feet. Her boot was not even an inch from his. "Kotone," he lifted her chin up and she noticed the strange look in his eye. Fear? "Tell me I mean something to you."

Her eyes widened and she tried to take a step back. He let his hand drop from her chin but he wouldn't let her go. "Silver," she started. This was her chance. She knew that deep down he had to feel something too, he just wanted her to make the move. Biting her lip she inhaled deeply and closed her eyes.

"Kotone, I already put myself out there for you. I jumped in a _goddamned_ whirlpool," he bit out. Pulling her closer he moved his face to the side and she felt his lips brush her ear as he talked. "I think I deserve a little more than whimpers and false words."

She found herself looking into his thick red hair and what came out wasn't what she planned. "I think you should cut your hair or pull it back. All the times I see you with it like that it looks _really good._" She felt him start to pull away and her hands shot out, one still held by his around the wrist, and grabbed the sides of his jacket to hold him where he was at. "Also, when you wore that collogue to my birthday a few months back I found you down right irresistible. Though so did all the other girls…maybe you shouldn't wear it anymore…" He started to relax, and after a short while he let go of her wrist. "When you look me in the eye when you talk to me I get flustered a lot too." His hand crept up her back and rested between her shoulder blades. "My pokémon don't glare at you anymore either, they seem to even like you now that you aren't a complete asshole." He took in a deep breath and she felt him rest his head on her shoulder and pull her in the rest of the way.

A hug. It was the second sign of any intimacy she had ever received from him. She lifted her hands up and wrapped them around his sides to return the embrace. "Kotone?"

"Yeah?"

"You can't tell anyone I just did that." And with that he pulled back and walked away.

* * *

Kotone didn't see him again for a month. For some reason she found that she didn't have the nerve to meet him the first week and then the next week when she found the nerve to see him again he was never there. Had he been scared off? Should she have kept all that to herself?

He _had_ told her not to tell anyone. Maybe he was ashamed that he had showed any emotion at all. Who was she kidding? For the past two years the two had been dancing around each other.

It was her sixteenth birthday and Professor Elm had joined forces with her mother to throw a huge party. Everyone had been there. Lance had come with Clair, and the two had tried not to fight the whole time. Hibiki had shown up with his first girlfriend, Maai, a beautiful girl from a land no one had even heard off. Joey, her first friend she had made on her journey, attended with his now beefed up Rattata. Professor Oak had made an appearance, with his new lovely assistant, Green. There were too many people to name but the one that surprised her was Silver.

When she sent the invitations she never thought he would really show up, but it was a nice gesture to invite him. He not only showed up he brought a gift. Something she owned to this day and valued highly. It was a comb that had a Staryu on top, each part of the comb was supposed to be part of her favorite pokémon. He had also apologized in private after many of the guests had left. She had blushed, her mind reeling with this information. Silver had then grabbed both sides of her face and planted a kiss on her lips. After that she only remembered him muttering another apology and leaving. She didn't see him again until five months later, when he met her at Dragon's Den and their routine had started.

Sighing Kotone kicked another rock into the pond near her house. She had flown in to see her mom for the weekend, Silver never being anywhere she knew of between Friday and Monday, to collect her thoughts again. She sat with her Staryu, who was spinning around in fast circles, and was talking quietly to it. She never expected any response other then the occasional 'Star' or 'yu' but it was nice to talk.

"Do you think I should have just left and not said anything to him? I mean… why else would he just not show up where he _has _shown up the past two years now." She pulled at her hair, having worn it down again today. For the past month in hope of seeing him.

"Star!" The pokemon stopped spinning and she noticed the gem in the center glow. A flow of bubbles came out and drifted across the water causing a beautiful sight. She laughed at the pokemon knowing it was only trying to make her smile, and it had succeeded. Rubbing a hand over the pokemon's back she gave him a push and watched him fall into the small pond, a few Magikarp flailing out of the water, and then swim around. Leaning back on her elbows she kicked her feet in the water. She wore shorts today with a black tank top. It was hot that summer and her home town was no exception.

"Tomorrow I'll go out again." She said to herself. It was Saturday night and she hated just sitting around. Her mother told her it was time to settle down and get a home. She was just thankful no one told her she had to get married yet.

She had beaten the league and had over sixteen badges and around one hundred pokemon in her storage boxes. She was thinking of going to the pokeschools to teach. Something. _Anything._

Maybe it could get her mind off of him…

"Miss me?" A whisper passed by her ear and she nearly jumped out of her skin when half a second later arms circled around her and pulled her back into a solid torso. Her stillness was more anger then fear as the realization of who it was hit her.

"Silver."

"Kotone." He rested his head on her shoulder and watched her Staryu turn towards them before diving down below again. "Sorry I've been away."

"Is that all? No explanation? God do you know what I've been going through! Thinking you were mad at me and didn't want to see me or…" He lifted a finger to her lips to silence her.

"I've been away for you. If you want this to be anything you need to understand that I am a complicated person."

"The first day I met you I knew that." She hissed against his finger that had yet to move. She lifted a hand to push it away and just as she did he opened his palm and looped his fingers with hers. "You could have warned me at least. This whole time I thought that you had been killed or that you were mad or…" She leaned back her head resting on his chest. "I was worried."

"I've done stunts like this for years you know. Always disappearing and reappearing."

"I know but now…well for the past few years I've almost always known where you were. It was a little, unnerving to not know where you are at."

He moved his face back and looked up into the sky. It was a soft orange, the sun beginning its decent beyond the horizon. "You missed me then?"

She looked up at him and was reminded of just how much taller he was now then he was before puberty. "Did you miss me?" He looked down, his chin resting on the top of her head. He made a face that indicated he was thinking hard. She elbowed his ribs and he let out a sharp breath.

"Yes," he wheezed. She sat up and turned around so she faced him and raised her knees so that they pressed against him. After he collected himself he looked at her seriously. "Why else did I hunt you down?"

"Well, I missed you too." She rested her head on her knees and watched him watch her. "Was it hard to find me?" She laughed when he groaned.

"I had to _ask people._" That was enough. Any interaction with others made him cringe. He was better then he used to be, but not happier about it. "I started with Lance when you didn't show up at the Den on Thursday. When he didn't know I asked that Hibiki fellow and he didn't know. Then I asked your mother, my last resort. I have been in your living room for the past three _hours_ talking to her you know. She wouldn't let me leave and you _never _showed up. So I wondered back here, she mentioned you did that sometimes, and here we are." He leaned forward, causing her to move her head backwards, and rested his chin on her knees.

"You talked to Hibiki? I haven't seen him in ages," she trailed off looking darkly at the ground. Shaking her head she found him looking at her hair. Self-consciously she started to play with the ends of it that rested over her shoulder. When he didn't stop she snapped at him, "Is something wrong with it?"

"No, not at all." He reached forward and traced along her face, down her neck and stopped right about her chest. "I've always liked your hair."

"Why? There isn't anything exotic about it. It's so normal."

He laughed. "No, normal would mean black hair. You have a different shade for our region."

"You have red hair Silver." He smiled at her as she realized something. "And you pulled it back!" She suddenly put down her knees and leaned forward. "And you have on that cologne!" She sat back on her hunches and stood up offering him her hand. He sat there a moment before taking her hand and rising. She called Staryu back and put his pokeball back on her belt and turned to the forest to start her journey back home. When he didn't follow she turned to him and stuck her hand out towards him. "You see those clouds?" She pointed with her free hand up. When he did look she smiled. "It means rain soon, and if you look and smell this good we are going out." He dropped his head down to look at her quickly with quizzical eyes. Walking to him she grabbed his hand in hers and pulled him forward his chest knocking into hers. "Silver," she traced a finger of her free hand up his jacket before grabbing the zipper and sliding it down. "This is my way of asking you out."

When she finished unzipping it his free hand reached up and grabbed hers. Lifting it he kissed her knuckles and enjoyed the blush. "That was my way of saying yes." He let go of one hand and held onto the other. "So where are we going?"

* * *

The two had dinner, bought from a fast food place, on top of Mt. Silver. Kotone picked it because of its great view, but they both knew part of it was for privacy. Red had abandoned it a year ago and Kotone had taken it as her own training ground after having defeated him at seventeen.

"I'm thinking of commissioning someone to build me a house out here." She told him through a mouthful of noodles. He tilted his head.

"Why? There isn't anything here. I could see myself living out here but not you, there are no people."

"Actually…that is kinda why. I'm tired of walking around and _everyone _knowing who I am and what I've done. I want some privacy, plus it is close to home so mom can visit a lot and…"

He turned to her. "Is there more to that?"

"Well…this way you will always know where to find _me._"

Up until that point she had always gone out to find him, the exception being tonight when he hunted her down. This way he would know where she was, and she hoped, so when he looked for her he could find her. She bit her lip and tossed the rest of her food to some pokemon down below waiting for him to say something.

She was surprised when he didn't say anything, he acted. Silver had barely touched his food either and tossed it down with hers. After that he moved his arm over her side and caged her in, her legs trapped between his and his arms on both sides of her body giving her no room to move. Silver hovered over her and watched as she displayed quite a few emotions. Fear, confusion, interest, anger, excitement, and finally the one he wanted longing. Leaning forward he let his face stop inches from her own. "Do you want me to find you?" She nodded dumbly, too caught up in the moment to say anything. "Why; what is so special about me that you want me around so much?" He lifted one hand and ran it over her cheek before burring itself in her hair. Kotone bit her lip and he assumed she was thinking hard about her next few words.

It came out as just a whisper but it had the same effect of if she had screamed it; "Everything."

He crushed his lips down on hers, emotions being too strong for him to know what else to do. It was her second kiss from him and it was far more electric then the first. She didn't know if it was because she had said the right thing or if it was all the built up sexual frustration from over the years but he put so much emotion into what he said when he pulled up that she almost cried. "I don't know what I would be without you," he whispered into her ear his hand running through her hair. She looped her hands out from under him and she pulled his face back to hers. He looked into her dark eyes and leaned down to brush her lips again. "Kotone," he whispered against them. "Are we to young for this?"

She laughed. It just had to be like him to say that. "Sex?" she noticed his blush.

"No," he mumbled moving to her ear, his hand leaving her hair and resting on her hip. Pulling her hip up she gasped at the evidence of his arousal. He groaned when she did it again on her own without prompting. He moved his hand to her chest and pushed her back against the ground. She let out a sound of disapproval but silenced when he shook his head. "There is no way we are too young for _that._" He hissed when her hands reached up and did what her hips could not.

Kotone wasn't a virgin, that had been taken from her a while back from her first fling. They had been young and wild and he found her attractive and she found him flattering. It had been clumsy and unpleasant but after that first time with the random trainer she did it with someone that taught her that sex could be wonderful.

Lance.

Their night together had taken her breath away; he had not only shown her once but three times how good it could be. Yet the next day she woke next to him and knew she could never love him. He had too much to do, too many responsibilities that didn't involve her. So she left, after writing a note, and didn't return to the league for months.

What she was feeling now wasn't just lust though. Sure she lusted after Silver, how could she not, but with him she felt it ran deeper. Her whole journey she had tried to teach him about compassion and love. So when she thought about it Silver was her first love. Since she tried to teach him about love of course she herself would learn some too.

"Are we to young be in love?" As if he had read her thoughts. She gasped again but this time it was his words that got to her.

"You…" she swallowed a lump in her throat, "you love me?"

"I think I am." He put his forehead against hers. "You know I have never felt this way before. I always think about you, _always. _When you are around now days all I can do is look at you and feel…something. It hurt at first and it made me mad." He laughed. "When we were sixteen. I don't think you thought of me as anything other than a rival back then." Kotone inhaled slowly, enjoying the scent and his voice. "That's why I kissed you. I had to see if doing that would make these feelings stop." He ran a hand up her hip bone to her ribs then back again. "It intensified them."

Kotone felt herself flush deeper. If he kept doing this to her…

"Then I started to notice your body more, your voice when you talked to me compared to others. And I thought maybe you felt the same. So I kept a schedule that involved us meeting as much as possible. I had dreams… oh gods I had dreams." He kissed her again. "I don't think that our first time together should be on a mountain." Kotone let out a sound as he pulled back. He smirked down at her before grabbing her hips and pulling her into a sitting position. "Kotone, you are more than just some girl to me." He leaned in a kissed her again, and just as he tried to pull back she held him in place. Groaning when she bit his lower lip he had to push her away from him to stop this from escalading into something he couldn't stop. "Kotone, do you know where we can go?"

Her head was swimming. Where they could go? No. She had no home other than her mothers and there was no way her mom would be okay with _this._ A few places came to mind but nowhere that he would be okay with. Leaning forward she kissed him again before standing. "I have no idea." She told him as he stood with her.

So much for them hooking up that night.

* * *

It was the final push she needed to build that house.

She had been designing it for years, ideas constantly coming up when she saw something she liked, and now she had her final plans and someone to build it. Chucks construction, she had met him in town one year when he built an addition onto Hibiki's house, for his research, and he had done such a good job she remembered him for this. He had a handful of Machoke's that helped him with this and had promised it would be done in a month. So Silver visited Kotone a lot that month, the tension between them intensified while he visited. Each encounter ended with her pushed against a tree or rock or building or anything solid and his hips flush against her own. The last time she swore he almost gave in and took her then and there against the sign posted up announcing who was doing the construction. Lucky for them it was night time and the crew wasn't there. So now she stood before Chuck and was evaluating his work.

She loved natural lighting, so most of the front of the house was windows. You could see everything from the kitchen to the living room and then the stairs leading upstairs. Then you saw a wall with four doors, and beyond that there was no more to see. He had installed her oven and fridge and was working out the counters now. She was to have furniture delivered from both her house and a store tomorrow and then it was just the small details. Sighing she wondered if she was being to impulsive. She wasn't doing this purely for Silver but it was the push she needed. Going over the paper work with Chuck she signed a few pages and called her mom. Her mother had been there a few days that week to see the end results and was happy. "My baby is growing up, good thing I saved all that money for you when you were younger huh?"

Though she had enough of her own that wasn't saved to build it herself. Talking to Chuck about the wiring for electricity she couldn't help but notice the redhead approaching them. The man nodded to Silver, having grown used to the man appearing once a day, and continued to talk about the circuitry. Silver ran his fingers up and down her back in slow motion causing shivers to run down her back. She tried her best to pay attention to Chuck but soon even he noticed her lack of focus. He smiled at the two and mentioned going through the same thing with his wife when they first were married and he built their house. Laughing to himself he left the two blushing trainers as he called out some Machoke's to hang lights in the bedrooms.

Silver spun her around quickly and kissed her forehead. "It's almost done huh?" He said quietly. She nodded, flustered. He could instill two strong emotions in her very easily; rage and lust. Both turned him on.

Kotone pulled away and walked after Chuck, her form of telling Silver to cool it off. He just ran a hand through his hair, which he had left down today, and watched her retreat. Maybe this was wrong. He didn't want to hurt her but in all honest could they work out a relationship? He dug his hands in his pockets and leaned against the very sign he had her against the other night. Sure he loved her, and he knew she felt the same, but was that enough. They fought a lot and right now the only thing stopping them was their desire. Shaking his head he realized what a stupid train of thought this was. He had never held down a relationship, ever since he was young he found _her _to be the only thing he ever wanted. Who know, maybe they could make it work. He wanted her for more than her body.

She made him rethink his entire lifestyle. He once was pushy, mean and an asshole. He cared only for himself and treated his pokemon like shit. She taught him to love and respect them, to love and respect himself, and in the end love and respect her. She deserved someone so much better than him, yet she showed those strong feelings towards him.

He could remember the first time he had seen her with another man, Hibiki, and he felt such jealousy at the time he just brushed it off as him being angry at not being able to challenge her. Now though, he knew it was because he had been afraid she had someone. Someone who would and _could _love her in the ways he _wanted _to. Sighing he pulled his hands out of his pockets and removed his jacket. Tossing it over his shoulder he watched her as she turned hesitantly towards him and smiled. God how he loved that smile. Suddenly he felt reassured. She smiled for him, and he would do whatever he could to make that continue to happen.

* * *

It was a week later when it was done. There wasn't enough furniture in the house for her to live comfortably but her first night there was amazing. The only thing that upset her was that Silver wasn't there. She had sat on her front porch waiting all night and finally, around two am, she had climbed upstairs and gone to bed.

So she was surprised when she woke up to flowers on her doorstep. Stumbling back into her home she scratched her stomach and placed them on the dining table her mother had sent her as a housewarming gift. Pulling the card off of them she rubbed her eyes to clear her vision.

_An apology and an invitation. Dinner tonight; your place. _

_Silver_

She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. Looking at the flowers she smiled; sunflowers. Her favorite. Going to the sink she opened the shelf below and pulled out a vase. After arranging the flowers and filling the vase with water she set it on her dining table and smiled.

So she had her own place now. If trainers wanted to challenger her they would have to come to her and not do it when they randomly bumped into her. This way only the truly strong could challenge her and even then she could turn them away if their pokemon were weak from the journey. She suddenly realized why Red wanted this. A true challenge needed a challenge to get to him and then still win. She felt her smile fade when her first challenger walked up to her door to knock.

But it reappeared when she saw who it was. The one youngster now ace trainer: Joey.

Opening the door she leaned on the frame, still in her tank top and drawstring pants. He colored, still a good four years younger than her. She was eighteen now, so that made him…fourteen now? She ruffled his hair and invited him in. He had grown so much. He took a seat on her couch and she mumbled a "be right back" before going upstairs to change.

Going through her closet she picked out her favorite jeans and a short sleeve t-shirt that had a Staryu in the middle above her chest. The gym leader Misty had given it to her as a gift once, after she found out Kotone loved Staryu's. Putting on her old running shoes and then tying her hair back in her trademark pig-tails she smiled at herself in the mirror. After running into the bathroom and brushing her teeth she grabbed her tote purse and ran downstairs. "Can I assume you came to talk or to battle?"

The youth smiled up at her and rose, he may be younger but he even challenged Silver in height, and then nodded. "How about both; I haven't seen you in a few months." He followed her out of her house and down to the clearing in front of the house. Kotone had been sure that during the construction they had left her room for battles. The two trainers took their stances across from one another and she watched as he let out his Rattata, and a smile covered her face. It was nice that over the years the rat pokemon hadn't evolved. Her hand was instantly drawn to her Staryu's pokeball.

Their battle didn't last long, two minutes at most. He had fainted her Staryu and Marowak but she had whipped out his team. So now they sat together under the shade of one of the massive trees on her property and talked. "So Silver and you are involved?" She tilted her head.

"Where did you hear about that?"

"It's all over the papers back home." He watched her face pale. "Is it true? It _is!_" He laughed.

"Where did they get a story like that though? We never went public or anything?"

Joey pulled out his backpack and pulled out a few article clippings; luckily one of them was about her and Silver. She took it from him with a light 'thanks' and read the opening paragraph.

_This reporter is proud to announce that our Champion from my home town NewBarkTown has been seen out and about with long time Silver. Kotone, who had defeated the Elite Four two years ago, was seen meeting her rival every Monday through Thursday for the past year, and though that has been going on for so long this past month someone saw more than just a meeting. Caught on film the two are seen exchanging a lovers embrace (seen above) in Dragon's Den last month after a heated fight. It seems the man flung himself into a whirlpool and after a swift rescue from his pokemon the two were seen exchanging heated embraces…_

Kotone flung the paper down. "We _are _seeing each other but this is _not_ what happened!"

"So how did it happen?"

Kotone flushed and handed him back the paper before running a hand over her head. She pulled on a pigtail and bit her lip in thought. "You know you look mighty young when you do that?"

Both trainers looked up surprised to see Silver standing next to the tree watching them with a smirk. "Silver!" Joey exclaimed jumping up and grabbing the older male's hand. "It's an honor to finally meet you! Kotone has told me so much about you over the years," he shook Silver's hand vigorously. Silver sent Kotone a smirk over the boys shoulder.

"Has she now?"

"Yeah! Though, now that you two are a couple I think it's okay!"

"It's…okay?"

"Yeah! I mean, usually when a boy likes a girl they push her away and all that…" Turning to Kotone he bowed quickly. "I will leave you two for now, but I'll be back for another battle later! Bye Kotone!" And with that he flew away on a Pidgeot.

Silver moved to sit by Kotone and noticed her sour face. "What? I thought I was mildly pleasant to the kid."

"You were, I'm upset about something else."

"Oh?"

"Did you see the article about…"

"Ah yes. The one Hibiki wrote."

"Hibiki wrote it!"

"Didn't you catch the name up top? It read: "Champion found her Match by Hibiki something"…I always forget the kids last name."

"He is older then you," she muttered.

"He is older then you too, but that isn't the point."

Sighing Kotone ran a hand over her face. "Silver," she asked. "Are we?"

"What? A couple?" He smirked at her irritated look. "Depends. As dysfunctional as we are?" He ran his fingers up and down her arm and smiled at the goose-bumps that rose. Laughing when she swatted his hand away he leaned in and kissed her cheek. Before he pulled away he rested a hand on her hip and kissed her ear. "Do you think we are?"

Blushing Kotone shrugged not wanting to be the one to decide. He sighed and pulled back. After a minute Kotone bit her lip. "Okay, I do! But if you don't then I'll back off or…" he cut her off with a kiss before standing and lifted her up.

"I do too. Now then, why not grab an early dinner?"

"Silver its one."

"Well… you could always wait until later then…" Blushing and knowing what he was getting at she slapped his shoulder.

"An early dinner sounds perfect."

**El Fin**

* * *

**There is a lemon here but seeing as how ff is horrible about blocking me I'll save it for whoever emails me about it. Ask and I'll send! Anyway! Reviews! Reviews. **

**Melimea**


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